The present invention relates to pedicure socks that slide on allowing a user to keep his/her feet warm while toe nails are being polished and while they are drying and, at the same time, keep the toe nails separated so that the polish is not marred while it is drying.
While such pedicure devices may offer the ability to keep the user's foot warm to allow the user to walk outside in cold weather, or, even, to allow the user to be comfortable in a pedicure salon during the winter months when exposed feet are likely to be cold, a principal drawback to the above described pedicure devices is that in order to remove the device it must slide over the fresh pedicure. Since the fresh polish is likely to be marred and the sock may be stained or coated by the polish requiring the use of solvents to remove the polish from the sock, risking ruining the shoe or sock by application of the solvent.
In view of the above, it would be preferable that the toe nails are not touched by the sock upon removal however, there are no socks of this type that could be advantageously used as a pedicure device.
Segovia, U.S. Pat. No. 4,181,982, shows a stocking with a convertible toe opening so that the toes can be left exposed. Additionally, Schwab, U.S. Pat. No. 3,329,972, shows an infant's bootie which has a convertible toe construction allowing the toes to be exposed. Five toes are exposed in the stocking or sock of Pugliatti, U.S. Pat. No. 5,623,734. The primary drawback of these socks or is that in order to remove the sock after the pedicure it must be slid past the fresh manicure. The polish on the toe nails could be marred by adjacent toes or toe nails, and polish could rub off on the skin of the toes requiring the use of solvent to remove the polish. Another problem in the U.S. Pat. No. 5,623,734 is that the toe sleeves rest very close to the nail and seem more suited for longer toes. Thus, the polish on the toe nails could be marred by adjacent sleeves on the socks.
Other socks or stockings may separate the toes, but keep them covered while leaving other parts of the foot exposed. These too must slide over the pedicure in order to remove the device and, thus, are unacceptable as pedicure devices that will protect the pedicure and keep the feet warm, since they offer the same problems for freshly painted toe nails as do conventional socks or shoes. Patents on this type of sock or stocking include Craighead, U.S. Pat. No. 1,308,483, Bosworth, and U.S. Pat. No. 715,543.
Still other socks or stockings may have an open design that leaves the toes exposed. These too must slide over the pedicure in order to remove the device and, thus, are unacceptable as pedicure devices that will protect the pedicure and keep the feet warm, since they offer the same problems for freshly painted toe nails as do conventional socks or shoes. Additionally these socks offer no options to separate the toes and tend to slide when one walks because there is nothing between the toes to prevent slippage. An example Patents on this type of sock or stocking is Rosenberg, U.S. Pat. No. 5,749,100
Hedges, U.S. Pat. No. 1,798,201 refers to using socks or stockings which separate the five toes and enclose three out of the five toes. Two of the five toes are left uncovered so that there is less material between the toes to avoid excessive chafing. However, the Hedges sock or stocking offers the same problems when used as a pedicure device as do stockings or socks which enclose all of the toes and must slide over the pedicure in order to remove the device.
Baehr, U.S. Pat. No. 5,054,129, refers to a garment which exposes the toes and may separate the smallest toe and the largest toe from the other toes. It is unsuitable as a pedicure device because it does not separate each toe one from the other, and because its manner of separation only serves to divide the toes at their respective bases such that the tops of the toes, where the toenails are located, are not separated one from the other. Thus, the fresh polish applied during the pedicure can be easily marred by adjacent toes or toe nails. Additionally this devices is a much more open design and leaves a great deal of the foot exposed to the elements.
Pugliatti, U.S. Pat. No. 5,623,734 refers to a sock or stocking having an open stalls in FIG. 4. However, it does not appear that shorter toes can fit through these stalls and remain uncovered. Even if the slits were adjustable for any length toe, the Patent does not offer a way to prevent the garment material from slipping up and covering over at least a portion of the toe nail after it has been pulled down beneath the toe nail, thus, risking damage both to the polish and the garment.
Hearn, U.S. Pat. No. 1,999,929, refers to hosiery with strips or straps between each toe. However, the strips between the toes in Hearn are very thin and only serve to divide the toes at the base of each toe, such that the tops of each toe, where the toe nail is located, would be in contact with each other. When the tops of the toes are in contact with each other, fresh polish can easily be marred by adjacent toes and/or toe nails.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,704,941 B1 refers to hosiery in which the toes are exposed and each toe is separately encircled by the hosiery for dividing each toe one from the other. However, because of the fitted glove like design that captures each toes polish may be easily marred by adjacent toes and/or toe nails upon removal of the device. Additionally, this design is more suited for individuals with long toes as the toe sleeves bunch and gather at the top of the to thereby permitting further risk to the pedicure.
None of the pedicure devices or hosiery discussed above are designed to separate the toes, to be easily removed without sliding the device over the fresh pedicure to protect fresh polish on the toe nails and, provide ample covering to keep the foot warm, all at the same time